Albany Times-Union, Syracuse Post-Standard Editorialize in Support of Paid Family Leave

Most Capitol observers agree that the Legislature is not likely to take up family paid leave legislation until next year. That would be a mistake. Governor Spitzer has outlined a sensible, affordable plan to help family members cope with a newborn or care for an ill family member. The longer the issue is put off, the greater the chances that it will fall victim to legislative gridlock.. . .While workers today are entitled to unpaid leave under federal law, that presents many family members with a difficult choice between forgoing a paycheck to provide care at home, or paying someone else to do so in their place while they are at work.

Workers are often caught in a desperate crossroads of providing care, holding onto their jobs and paying their bills. Providing them with even a small family leave payment is the right thing to do.

And it's time to make it happen.. . .The proposed plan, backed by family advocates, would improve employee morale and make the workplace more responsive to, and in harmony with, America's most important institution - the family.

Time off to care for a newborn shouldn't be a luxury that only some families can afford - it should be a cornerstone of our society.. . .If we believe in a society where working families take care of each other, one in which new parents have the ability to take care of their children, then we should pass the Working Families Time to Care Act. If we believe in a society where working people have responsibilities both to their employers and to their families, and that a balance between those two responsibilities is critical to building a healthy community for all of us, then we should pass this bill.